Considerations

Is it brightly coloured so it will be difficult to misplace it in plain sight?
Some are plain black, but most are yellow, red, orange, blue and even green. Some
are metals such as chrome.

How long is it?

How wide is it? If it is extra wide, it will standout still for perhaps ten
feet. That means you can measure things without having to secure the tip. If it is
thin, it will be less bulky and will weigh less.

When you hold the canister in your right hand and pull the tape out to the
left, how are the numbers oriented? There are four possibilities. Most commonly
they are up the way most right-handed people prefer them.

Does it have calibrations in inches, centimeters or both with metric on top or
imperial on top?

It is small enough to slip into a pocket?

Does the tape automatically lock when extended until you press the release
button?

Does it have a digital readout? Sometimes this feature is deceptively touted as
laser tape. In reality, there is no laser, just a
traditional tape with a digital LCD (Liquid Crystal Display)
readout,
perhaps easier to read than the tape itself, perhaps more difficult depending on
the lighting and your eyesight. However,
Stanley and Skil
each make true tapeless laser measuring devices. Skil’s 0530 AA laser unit can measure from 0.2 to
20 metres with a measuring accuracy ±
3.0mm. This would be ideal for measuring room sizes,
even very large rooms. Skil’s
0520 AD ultrasonic unit is not as accurate with a range of 0.5 to 15 metres with accuracy ±
0.5%.

Does it have an unusually durable coating? This is useful for outdoor
construction where the tape can get dirty or gritty.

Primarily what you pay for is increased durabilty. This is important if you use
the tape on the job. It is not that important if you just do a few measurements a
year. My personal needs are rather modest. I got an inexpensive Lufkin 25’
Classic model HVC725CME. My only complaint with it is it is a big bigger and
heavier than I would like. It is a nice fiery shade of orange, less likely to hide
like my old one is doing.

Manufacturers

Futures

When you walk into a hardware store, there are scores of models of tape measure to
choose from. Except for length and width, few are labeled with any information to
help you tell them apart. I would like it if manufacturers would host an app on their
website to help you decide the optimal model for you. It would ask you a number of
questions and then present you with models that match your requirements. The app
could also explain the benefits and drawbacks of various choices. You could also run
the app on a cell phone, limiting it to the models a particular retailer carries.

In similar way, a retailer could offer this app at kiosks and on cell phones for
his customers for all his brands and products that have this overwhelm problem.

The manufacturers should compose a set of questions about their models they can
answer with a
or
or a word or number. The questions should be so-designed that no two models have an
identical set of answers. They should post the answers on their website and also
print them on the back of the card that comes with each tape.

Works my measuring the time for a laser beam to reflect off a surface. Measures 0.2 to 20 metres with a measuring accuracy ± 3.0mm. This would be ideal for measuring room sizes, even very large rooms. Specs